Abstract:

Immature granulocyte (IG) has been reported to be useful in the diagnosis of sepsis and in distinguishing true bacteremia from contamination. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the role of IG level in distinguishing true bacteremia and contamination from Coagulase Negative Staphylococci (CNS) and to compare IG value with previously accepted markers such as WBC (White Blood Cell), procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP). The blood culture CNS positive group was divided into true bacteremia (n = 71, Group I) and contamination (n = 66, Group II). Blood cultures were incubated in the BacT-ALERT 3D Microbial Identification System (BioMérieux, France). Blood culture vials giving positive (reproduction) signals in the device were passaged to appropriate media. Staphylococcal colonies grown on the media were evaluated by Gram staining, catalase, and coagulase tests. Whole blood cell count data were obtained from the Automatic Hematological Auto analyzer (Sysmex XN 3000). We found IG concentration higher in the group with true CNS bacteremia compared to the contamination group, but this elevation was not statistically significant. In addition, WBC, PCT, and CRP values were higher in CNS bacteremia, but WBC and PCT were statistically significant, whereas CRP was not significant. Due to the limitations stated in our study, IG values indicate that there is no discriminating power for CNS with true bacteremia and contamination. In the future, this comparison should be confirmed by a prospective study, taking into account the existing limitations.

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